The internal-environment model of the Stern-Gerlach experiment

Abstract

The standard interpretation of the Stern-Gerlach experiment assumes that the atomic center-of-mass plays the role of "quantum apparatus" for the atomic spin. Following a recent, decoherence-based, model fitting with this interpretation, we investigate whether or not such model can be constructed. Our conclusions are somewhat surprising: only if the screen capturing the atoms in the experiment brings the information about the atomic-nucleus center-of-mass, one may construct the model desired. The nucleus $CM$ system is monitored by the nucleus "relative system ($R$)". There appear the effective (the electrons-mediated) interaction between $CM$ and $R$ that is possibly responsible for decoherence. For larger atoms, the interaction scales as $Z^2$ ($Z$ is the "atomic number"), being totally independent on the atomic mass. The interaction selects the $CM$-wave-packet states as the approximate pointer basis. Interestingly enough, the model stems nonoccurrence of decoherence due to the internal environment for the larger systems (such as the macromolecules and the macroscopic systems). Certainly, disproving this model (e.g. in an experiment) stems the active role of the screen, which becomes responsible for the "$CM$ + spin"-state "reduction" ("collapse"), i.e. for the irreversible retrieval of the classical information from the quantum world.